Skinny Vanilla French Toast

June 28, 2016 Amanda Plott

With the onslaught of summer and my little one now home with me for duration of these long hot months, my morning routine has certainly shifted. Even with it's changes, there are those few staple things that always stay the same. One of those things if me starting my day off right with my morning cup of coffee. In fact, it's become common laughable knowledge around here not to attempt communication until I've had my java. Hah!

Once I have my coffee I start in on making breakfast for whoever happens to be around. On most mornings, it's just myself and my little girl. But, my place is sort of the middle ground for most of my family, so there's a handful of people that come and go on occasion; my lovely 'wild cards'. This morning, my wild card was my little brother. I always like to feed him because he's not afraid to tell me what he really thinks...

Skinny Lemon Thumbprint Cookies (Gluten Free)

March 16, 2016 Amanda Plott

Thank you Bob's Red Mill for sponsoring this post! Check out more delicious baking recipes at BobsRedMill.com.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again... Spring is most definitely one of my favorite times of year. There's just something to be said of the change in light, the fresh air, and everything coming back to life in the garden.

I don't know about you, but when I think about Spring and Easter, I think about the brightness of lemons. Maybe that's because it's about this time of year when my lemon tree starts to produce for me; giving me plenty of fresh beautiful lemons to use at my leisure.

To celebrate the arrival of Easter and Spring, I decided it would be the perfect time to bake up some tender, sweet and tart lemon thumbprint cookies - perfect for any basket; Easter or otherwise!...

Quick Lemon Blackberry Rosemary Spritzer

March 15, 2015 Amanda Plott

This post was brought to you by Collective Bias, Inc. and it's advertiser. I received compensation to write this post … but, all opinions expressed are my own. #KeepSpringBubbly #CollectiveBias

Spring is here! I'm not sure if it's because this past week was spent 'springing forward' or if it's a change in the weather lately, but I can see Spring quickly taking over! There's nothing that welcomes spring in more than a nice effervescent beverage that's full of the good stuff.

What good stuff? Fresh fruit, berries, and herbs straight from the garden! I'm really lucky to have fresh herbs and a lemon tree at my disposal. Two of my favorite spring fruits are lemons and blackberries. This is a classic flavor combination that always adds a little happy to my day, and trust me, I need some happy lately.

Blackberries have always been a favorite of mine. I remember when I was little and we lived on the coast of Oregon for a few years. Once the sun started to sprout through the coastal clouds, I knew it was the time of year when blackberries ran rampant. I could literally walk out into my backyard and pick a basket of perfectly ripe blackberries. Yum. ...Oh, how I miss those days!...

Morning Detox Honey Lemon Peppermint Water

February 20, 2015 Amanda Plott

I've heard a lot over the past year about the health benefits of drinking honey lemon water in the morning. So, a few months back I decided to begin testing this theory. But, instead of using plain-jane lemons and honey, I wanted to make an upgrade.

For a long while now, I've been taking a more therapeutic and wholesome approach to my chronic neck/shoulder pain, massive headaches, and debilitating ocular migraines. I've been dabbling with DoTerra Essential Oils quite a bit to help with common household illness, pain, mood, and even with my cooking! I figured that my essential oils would be a great addition or substitution to my new-found morning drink...

Pesto Chickpea & Avocado Salad

August 8, 2014 Amanda Plott

I really cannot say enough about this salad. I would have never guessed that these 6-ish ingredients would have come together in such an awesome and delicious way. This mighty green salad was tossed together in less than 5 minutes and was unbelievably satisfying. Seriously. I've eaten it about four times already this week.

The lemon juice works to brighten up the pesto and together they actually end up as a rather substantial amount of flavorful 'dressing'. Yes, that's right - you don't need to add any dressing to this salad. The ingredients work together to make their own lemony pesto dressing that is de{light}ful and actually one of my newest favorite things...

Perfect Guiltless Detox Lemonade

June 28, 2013 Amanda Plott

How can I call this a 'Detox Lemonade'?

Well, I've been toying a lot with the whole detox water phenomena that has struck the Food & Drink pages of Pinterest lately. The basic gist of it is that you soak fresh fruits and herbs in water overnight and wake up to a lightly flavored water to sip on during the following day...